Touch screen to get the deal

A self-help kiosk will be launched on March 1 at Forum Mall, Bengaluru to provide free access to the internet, along with deals offered at the mall.

What if you enter a mall to find all the discounts offered at the mall, all deals from e-commerce sites and at the same time, surf the internet for free, at one place? Sounds attractive!

Touch Infotainment, promoted by JGI Ventures, has come up with a self-help kiosk where, in a click, one can get to know about the deals offered by various brands at the mall, can avail extra discounts on e-commerce sites and also access free internet. Four kiosks providing the offer will be launched at Forum Mall, Bengaluru on March 1.

Each self-help kiosk has an 18.5 inch touch screen monitor, on which advertisements from various brands and e-commerce sites will be displayed in the form of icon ads, banner ads and video ads.

To access the internet, one first has to enter his mobile number in the space provided. A code will be sent to the mobile number. Free internet can be accessed only after providing this code, within five minutes of receiving it. The internet connection will be automatically disconnected after 20 minutes. People who wish to continue have to repeat the whole procedure to obtain connection with a fresh code.

Pradeep Paul, co-founder and director, Touch Infotainment, says, "The self-help kiosk is a media platform which offers an option to advertise and promote in a more unique and interactive manner."

In the arrangement, the revenue is generated through advertisements such as icon ads, banner ads and video ads. While the brand icons are present on the screens, the banners run simultaneously over the screen and are changed after every eight seconds. Video ads are available in two formats. A video ad appears if the screen remains unused for one minute, or appears as a pop up ad every four minutes when the touch screen is being used. The company offers various revenue packages combining the various formats.

"Stores at the malls offering special discounts can promote it among the clients through the kiosks; also, the e-commerce sites offer special coupons to those who click on the ads," adds Paul.

The brand has already roped in several advertisers such as Aircel to promote its 3G plans, taxiforsure.com, William Penn that retails writing instruments, desktop and lifestyle accessories, along with zovi.com, an online shopping site.

As of now, the company is concentrating on malls in Bengaluru due to the high footfalls of the targeted age group (18-30 years). Later, it plans to expand to other cities and also equip the kiosks with store and product locators inside the malls.